Do students suffer from mental health problems?

The short answer is yes - sometimes students experience mental health issues. Just like any other person in the world. There are studies that show students experience high levels of stress and feeling of loneliness. You would be surprised at how many students experience these feelings. Even though we`re always told our student years are the happiest in our lives and we need to work super hard and still have energy to go to parties, study all night long, have 3 student jobs and go out on dates - you probably don't feel like you can manage half of your responsibilities sometimes. The truth is being a student can be very stressful and exhausting. And with all this stress and worry about how you`re going to achieve your goals in life and all that - you can experience periodic depression or other mental health issues. Student depression is a real thing and a surprising amount of people experience it. There is nothing shameful about having these difficulties, and ignoring them will only make them worse. Germany has a comprehensive mental health system and with your student health coverage you are also entitled to therapy sessions and other form of mental health support. You can also ask your GP (Hausarzt) for mental health related sick days. German system also has a practice in place to provide those. Some universities have their own student counsellors but not all. Information about therapists and counseling in your area is best found online and through your friends. Up to 53 million people in Germany suffer from depression each year. There is still a stigma attached to mental health in this country, like most others, but the best way of breaking it is to accept that mental health is like any other aspect of your health - it is sometimes better and then sometimes it requires attention and treatment. You probably wouldn't feel ashamed to go and ask your doctor for help with a nasty cold - asking help because you need help with mental health is exactly the same.